The Manufacturers Resource Center (MRC) is proud to announce the award recipients for the “What’s So Cool About Manufacturing?” Berks Schuylkill student video contest awards.  Over 1000 people attended the event, held Monday April 25, 2022 at the DoubleTree by Hilton in Reading, PA.  The awards ceremony was held, thanks to generous contributions from community sponsorships, in partnership with Manufacturers Resource Center and teaming partners Berks Business-Education Coalition, Kutztown Small Business Development Center, eMediaWorks, and Sahl Communications, Inc. The WSCM program was created by the Manufacturers Resource Center (MRC) in 2013.

Twenty-nine student teams compete for the most votes to win the coveted “Viewers Choice Award” with voting online open to all for a 3-day period. Videos were also reviewed by a panel of judges for awards in nine other categories, including Outstanding Career Pathway, Outstanding Editing and Outstanding Creativity.

The WSCM contest, presented by MRC, partners students from 29 schools in Berks and Schuylkill counties with 29 local manufacturers.  Each student team created and promoted a short video that documented their experience, highlighting what is “cool” about manufacturing at their assigned manufacturer.  The winning videos in the region will be considered to represent the Berks Schuylkill program at the annual statewide competition in May in Harrisburg.

“The student video contest is gaining more and more momentum every year. The combination of the way this creative program is structured, the hard work of the students, teachers and manufacturers and the excitement within the community make the WSCM contest a unique experience and an effective career awareness program,” said Rich Hobbs, President and CEO at MRC. “The message in the student videos about today’s manufacturing environments and career opportunities is amplified by the incredible support from the community and manufacturers going above and beyond with enthusiastic social media engagement and grass roots outreach approach.”

This year’s awards are as followed:

1. Outstanding Videography: Reading Southern Middle School- Reading Truck
2. Outstanding Editing: Wilson West Middle School- East Penn Manufacturing Company
3. Outstanding Creativity: Shenandoah Valley Jr./Sr. High School- Fabcon Precast
4. Outstanding Cool: Daniel Boone Middle School- Cambridge-Lee Industries
5. Outstanding Team Spirit: (TIE) Schuylkill Valley Middle School- Misco Products Corporation
6. Outstanding Team Spirit: (TIE) Wyomissing Area Junior Senior High School- Viwinco, Inc
7. Outstanding Outreach Plan: Muhlenberg Middle School- Sweet Street Desserts, Inc.
8. Outstanding Career Pathway: Oley Valley Middle School- American Crane & Equipment Corporation
9. Outstanding Educational Value: D.H.H. Lengel Middle School- Ashland Technologies, Inc.
10. Viewers Choice: Conrad Weiser Middle School- F.M. Brown’s Sons, Inc.
11. Outstanding Overall Program: Boyertown Middle School West-Mitsubishi Chemical Advanced Materials Inc.

The WSCM contest, presented by MRC, gives students a new perspective on modern manufacturing as they engage with local manufacturers, recording and presenting their experiences in an educational and “cool” way through documentary video production.

The program was created to generate excitement that draws students toward CTE and STEM education opportunities and to consider manufacturing career paths.

Visit WhatsSoCool.org for more information and resources and follow on Facebook.com/wscmBerksSchuylkill, Twitter @wscmBerksSchuyl and Linkedin.com/company/what-s-so-cool-about-manufacturing-berks-schuylkill/

Developed by Manufacturers Resource Center (MRC), WSCM program is a video based educational tool that increases awareness of career paths and technology in manufacturing through “peer marketing” (kids telling kids what’s so cool about manufacturing jobs.). The contest is showcased on the What’s So Cool Website and shared nationally through the Manufacturing Institute and the Manufacturing Extension Partnership platforms.  The Berks Schuylkill contest has expanded across the Commonwealth and the country.  The WSCM Video Library was created as a digital resource showcasing more than 500 Pennsylvania manufacturers. https://www.whatssocool.org/video-library/.

This contest gives students the opportunity to connect with local manufacturers, document their experiences and present them in an educational and “cool” way. The contest was created to generate excitement that draws students towards manufacturing career paths, and CTE and STEM education. Original funding for “What’s So Cool About Manufacturing?” was furnished by a grant from the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development (PADCED).

About Manufacturers Resource Center: 

For 33 years, the Manufacturers Resource Center (MRC) has helped small and mid-sized manufacturers become more competitive, adopt lean and agile processes, strategically grow their companies and invest more effectively in advanced technologies and their existing human capital. MRC is a nonprofit organization partially funded by the U.S. Department of Commerce’s NIST-MEP program, as well as the State of Pennsylvania’s Department of Community and Economic Development. The MRC is dedicated to creating jobs and economic opportunity in eastern Pennsylvania’s Berks, Carbon, Lehigh, Northampton, and Schuylkill counties.

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